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WHO WE ARE
Dedicated to each member's creative development, Soyulla Artists provides private lessons in the arts, peerless performers through Soyulla Stars! and community programs through Center Stage. There's something for everyone! (more…)
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Malaika Sims Alvaro began her early musical training on the violin and piano at age six. By age fourteen, she was accepted into the National Symphony Orchestra Youth Fellowship Program for violin where she performed on the Concert Stage at the Kennedy Center. At age 11, her performance in Puccini's La Boheme in the Opera House set the stage for her pursuit of voice.
A soprano and international performer, Malaika made her New York Debut at the Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall in 1999 winning critical acclaim. Continued highlights include Maria in Westside Story, Clara in Porgy and Bess, Suzanna in Le Nozze di Figaro, First Lady in Zie Zaubteflote, Emmie in Albert Herring, Zerlina in Don Giovanni, and Filia in Jephte. She has appeared with The Aspen Music Festival, The Hamptons Music Festival and Salzburg Festival, the New York City Summer Concert Series and performed in a guitar recital under the auspice of the famed guitarist, Sharon Isbin. She has been a featured soloist with the Mexican National Orchestra, the Hungarian National Orchestra, the National Symphony Orchestra and Westchester Philharmonic.
An experienced music teacher, Malaika established her private voice studio in 1996 where she later closed the doors to perform. After touring for several years, she reopened her studio in the fall of 2003. She is the former director of the voice department at the Long Island Conservatory of Music and Arts, is on faculty at the Church Street School for Music and Arts and Soyulla Artists. Along with being an advocate for educational outreach bringing opera to inner city schools, she has judged competitions in the New York and Washington, D.C. metropolitan areas. She holds a Bachelor of Music from The Juilliard School and a Master of Music from The Manhattan School of Music.
Aminda Asher holds a B.M. in cello performance from Indiana University's Jacobs School of Music and a M.M. in Orchestral Performance from the Manhattan School of Music. Ms. Asher has appeared in concerts at many of New York's greatest performance venues including Carnegie Hall's Weill Recital Hall and Zankel Hall, The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center's Rose Studio, Merkin Hall, Symphony Space, Bargemusic, and (Le) Poisson Rouge. She has performed with several regional orchestras in the New York metropolitan area including the Hudson Valley Philharmonic, Riverside Symphonia, The Chelsea Symphony, and Astoria Symphony, and has also played for several musical theater productions with the Prospect Theater Company and Making Books Sing.
Outside of New York, Ms. Asher has performed with the New World Symphony in Miami, Fl, and the Santo Domingo Music Festival Orchestra in the Dominican Republic, as well as participating in the intensive summer study programs at the Music Academy of the West and the Banff Centre of the Arts Chamber Music Residency Program. An avid chamber musician, she regularly plays with a variety of chamber ensembles including neoLIT, a chamber group dedicated to performing contemporary music with a special emphasis on the programming of works by women composers.
Polish-born violinist Kinga Augustyn performed her New York Debut Recital at Weill Hall, Carnegie hall in March 2008. Described as "a violinist for whom nothing seems too difficult" (Nowy Dziennik, March 2008, New York City), Ms. Augustyn has also released a CD with Nicolo Paganini's 24 Caprices for Violin Solo.
A Bachelors (2004) and Masters (2007) graduate of the Juilliard School in New York, where as a full-tuition scholarship recipient she studied with Cho Liang Lin, Naoko Tanaka, and the legendary Dorothy DeLay, Ms. Augustyn has appeared with the Magdeburg Philharmonic Orchestra, the Chamber Orchestra Leopoldinum, the Wroclaw Philharmonic Orchestra, the American Academy of Conducting Orchestra at the Aspen Music Festival, and the Augusta Symphony Orchestra, among others.
As a soloist and a chamber musician, she has appeared in the US at halls including Carnegie Hall (Stern Auditorium and Weill Recital Hall), Paul Hall, Alice Tully, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Kosciuszko Foundation House, the Polish Embassy in Washington, DC, and the Ethical Society of Philadelpia, PA. She has also performed in various concert halls in Europe, primarily in Poland and Germany.
Kinga Augustyn has shown interest in contemporary music, and has premiered new works of composers including Michael White (Sonata for Violin and Piano 2009 composed especially for her), Jakub Ciupinski (Emaus 2008 composed especially for her), Noam Faingold and Cynthia Lee Wong. Recent contemporary music discography includes Michael White's Piano Quartet recorded for the Albany record label in 2010. Kinga Augustyn is a member of the Syzygy New Music Collective. Also interested in promoting Polish music in the US and abroad, she frequently performs her native composers' music.
Ms. Augustyn also plays a Baroque Violin and has been involved in early music activities at the Juilliard School, where she performed during the 2008 and 2009 Residency of early music specialists William Christie and Les Arts Florissants.
She is a candidate for a doctoral degree at the State University of New York, Stony Brook, where she also coaches chamber music to undergraduate students. Her teachers there have included Philippe Graffin, Philip Setzer, and Pamela Frank.
Ms. Augustyn won international awards, including the First Prize at the Alexander & Buono International String Competition (New York, 2009), Special Award of the Artist International Presentations (New York, 2007), Second Prize at the Kosciuszko Foundation Wieniawski Violin Competition (New York, 2007), the Special Audience Award at the Johannes Brahms International Competition (Poertschach, Austria, 2001), the 1st Prize at the J. S. Bach String Competition (Zielona Gora, Poland, 1999), the Special Prize for Virtuosity and the 4th Prize at the Kloster Schoental International Young Artist Competition (Kloster Scheontal, Germany, 1999). Recently she was also featured as the Artist of the Month by the Alexander & Buono International String Competition.
Aimee Barnes is a musical theatre performer, singer, and teaching artist. Her performance credits include New York productions of A Christmas Carol, A Midsummer Night's Dream, and The Tamer Tamed. She was also in a national tour of Cinderella, playing the role of the Fairy Godmother and regional productions of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, A Christmas Carol, and Divas & Darlings. Ms. Barnes also has experience developing and performing her own cabaret shows. She sings in a variety of genres including classical, musical theatre, and contemporary styles and has worked as a singer at wedding ceremonies, holiday parties, and birthday celebrations.
A Phi Beta Kappa member, Ms. Barnes graduated magna cum laude from American University with her degree in Music Theatre. As a teaching artist, Ms. Barnes directed and taught at the Emma Willard School's performing arts program for three summers. She is currently teaching voice and piano with Soyulla Artists. Ms. Barnes has experience teaching many genres of music including Disney, Broadway, and classical. In addition to technique and musicality, she incorporates fun songs and active learning into each lesson. She is also available to teach musical theatre and drama.
Jonathan Barnes is a versatile performer and educator. Born and raised just outside of Baltimore, he is now active in the New York and Philadelphia music scenes.
Jonathan maintains a busy performance schedule spanning genres such as jazz, latin, rock, and classical. His work as a freelance trumpet player has enabled him to share the stage with artists such as John Fedchock, John Swana, Bobby Sanabria, Candido Camero, Bernadette Peters, Simone, Ruben Blades, Larry Harlow, Seneca Black, Marcus Belgrave, Bootsie Barnes, Denis Diblasio, and George Rabbai. Jonathan has performed at New York venues such as Lincoln Center, the Jazz Standard, Le Poisson Rouge, Dizzy's Club Coca-Cola, Symphony Space, FB Lounge, Tribeca Performing Arts Center, Manhattan Center, SOB's, and The Cutting Room, along with venues in Philadelphia such as the Kimmel Center and Chris' Jazz Cafe. He has also performed at the Verona Jazz Festival, the Telluride Jazz Celebration, and the Cape May Jazz Festival.
In addition to his work as a performer, Jonathan received a Master of Music degree in Jazz Performance from Manhattan School of Music. His teachers there included Scott Wendholt, Jon Faddis, Garry Dial, Phil Markowitz, David Liebman, Steve Slagle, and Justin DiCioccio.
Jonathan is passionate about sharing his love of music with students of all ages and has taught students in New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Maryland. Along with maintaining a private studio, Jonathan has presented master classes, taught big bands at the middle and high school levels, and worked with summer jazz camps. He is currently a member of the adjunct faculty at Rowan University where he teaches music appreciation and music theory.
Saxophonist, composer, and educator Sean Berry is a transplant from Washington State who has been performing and teaching in the Northeast since 1998. He has shared the stage and studio with jazz greats such as James Williams, Clark Terry, Bobby Shew, Danilo Pérez, Oliver Lake, Frank Mantooth, Jim McNeely, Ingrid Jensen, Matt Wilson, Gary Burton, and Rebecca Paris, and maintains an active freelance schedule playing many styles of music, including jazz, funk, rock, blues, and some stuff that probably should have its own bin at the record store. In addition to maintaining a busy teaching studio, Sean is a member of the Boston-based Chuck Gabriel Septet and the Makanda Project (along with local favorites Charlie Kohlhase, John Lockwood and Yoron Israel), and can also be heard with his own band, Vaunce. While completing his master's degree in Jazz Studies at the New England Conservatory of Music, he studied with Danilo Pérez, Charlie Banacos, Jerry Bergonzi, John McNeil, Bob Moses, and Cecil McBee.
As a teacher, Sean strives to help his students connect directly and organically to what they love most about music, using those elements as a foundation for developing the technical facility and sonic awareness necessary to carry them to their musical goals. He believes that learning is best approached with the knowledge that, no matter how sophisticated the music, it starts from the ear and ends up at the ear, and of the myriad theories, methods, and instruments available, each is only one vehicle for delivering it there.
Driven by the desire to make music available to everyone, Andrew Brandt is passionate as a music teacher, performer, and composer. A native of Wisconsin, Mr. Brandt started his musical education journey at age eleven on the piano and went on to complete a Bachelor of Arts degree in Music at the University of Wisconsin - Eau Claire, studying Piano with Dr. Barbara Wimunc-Pearson and Dr. Donald Patterson, and Organ with Mr. Paul Kosower. During his undergraduate experience Mr. Brandt was the recipient of the Fadness organ scholarship and the Wisconsin study abroad grant.
As a piano teacher, Mr. Brandt has been directing students down the path of learning music since starting a piano teaching studio in 2006. With his diverse background in music training on the piano--performing, improvising and composing by his early teens--Mr. Brandt guides each student with facility. A member of the Music Teachers National Association, Mr. Brandt continuously finds new ways to make music more understandable.
As a performer, Mr. Brandt has held piano teacher and organist positions throughout the Midwest and also has had numerous international opportunities to share his musical talent. These experiences, including a semester of study in France and a performance tour of Rio De Janeiro, Brazil, have all guided Mr. Brandt's musical career. Most recently, interning as a facilitator in a 9-week groundbreaking music composition workshop in rural Cote d'Ivoire, Africa, Mr. Brandt has firmed his desire to be a part in international music in order to make a positive impact around the globe. Seeking to continuously inspire those around him to share their music in their community, country and world, Mr. Brandt presently resides in New York City.
Playing trumpet and piano since the age of nine and studying jazz since age 11, Berkeley, California native Billy Buss is emerging as in-demand artist and educator. After graduating Summa Cum Laude from both the Berklee College of Music in 2009 (B.A. in Professional Music) and The Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz Performance at Loyola University of New Orleans in 2011 (M.A. in Music), Billy transplanted his performing and teaching endeavors to the Greater Manhattan Area.
Buss has received numerous awards from DownBeat Magazine, The National Foundation for the Advancement in the Arts (NFAA) and The White House. His talents and dedication have allowed him the opportunity to perform around the world at such venues as the Monterey, Umbria, Montreux and JVC Jazz festivals; the Dubrovnik Summer Music Festival in Croatia; numerous festivals in Japan; the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C.; a variety of clubs in Boston and New York, the 2010 World Expo in Shanghai, and the Forbidden City Concert Hall in Beijing, China – the former two as part of a State Department sponsored tour with legends Herbie Hancock and Dee Dee Bridgewater.
In addition to a long list of performance opportunities, Buss has spent the last 6 years developing his own teaching curriculum which expounds upon numerous subjects that have dominated his studies: Brass Technique (Jazz and Classical), Improvisation Techniques, Harmony and Theory, Ear Training, Composition, Arranging and Performance Techniques. Over the last two years, Billy honed this curriculum while traveling throughout the Gulf Coast region bringing knowledge, fun and discourse through jazz music to underprivileged and under-funded schools in the wake of Hurricane Katrina.
Matt Buttermann is a guitarist/composer/educator in the New York City area. His love for music began like many guitarists - after hearing Jimi Hendrix for the first time, he immediately picked up a guitar and began learning as many Hendrix songs as possible. Then the music of guitar greats Joe Pass and Wes Montgomery changed his view of guitar and opened his eyes to jazz. Matt has since combined his love of classical music, jazz, and classic rock into a passion for all music throughout his career as a performer and educator.
Matt has been featured at jazz festivals throughout the United States with many renowned jazz artists, including Larry Coryell, Alex Han, Brice Winston, James Moody, and Todd Williams. Since moving to New York City in 2004, he has been an active performer in jazz clubs around the city, having performed at venues like Jazz at Lincoln Center's Dizzy's Club Coca-Cola and the Jazz Standard, with artists such as Wycliffe Gordon, Phil Woods, Clark Terry, Rich Perry, and Jimmy Heath, among others.
As an educator, Matt has taught both private guitar students and in various public schools around NYC, including jazz performance at the famed Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts. In addition to hands-on teaching, Matt frequently works with Jazz at Lincoln Center and the Smithsonian Institute on many educational programs. As a way of bringing performance and education together, he founded the Prescott Jazz Celebration in 2005 in his hometown of Prescott, Arizona, featuring internationally acclaimed jazz artists in a four-day event of performances and free workshops.
Matt has studied with Peter Bernstein, Lionel Loueke, Gene Bertoncini, Mulgrew Miller, Armen Donelian, and James Chirillo. He has a Bachelor's degree in Jazz Performance and Music Education from the City College of New York and a Master's in Jazz Studies from William Paterson University.
Julia Crowe is a New York-based guitarist whose music, like her writing, conveys an inventive, dexterous and slyly humorous style delivered with skillful mastery. She performs original fingerstyle pieces on both electric and classical nylon string guitar. Fingerstyle Guitar Magazine writes, "A musical chameleon with an ethereal sound and a uniquely nightshade hue of the blues, each one of Julia's pieces tells its own story in varied landscapes of mood, texture and dimension brought together by incandescent guitar playing." She has recently recorded music for Evanstonian, a film documentary retrospective on the works of artist Ron Crawford.
Ms. Crowe has authored over a dozen magazine cover stories and features for Classical Guitar Magazine (U.K.), Acoustic Guitar Magazine, Guitar Player, FRETS, Mel Bay's Guitarsessions, Down Beat and Soundboard. A graduate of the University of Chicago with a degree in English Literature, she has lived and performed in New York, London, Los Angeles, Wexford, Ireland and in Paris, where she performed at Notre Dame Cathedral. She has also performed solo in Chicago's Grant Park, the Daley Center Plaza and at DePaul University.
Her solo instrumental, Sid's Swagger, received an American Composer's Forum Encore Grant. Her work was also featured among the works of twelve other composers from around the world in SONIC Channels: Emerging Media Publics, an audio concert held in conjunction with the Project Media Space | Public Space exhibition hosted by The New School University Media Studies Department and the Lower Manhattan Cultural Council. She was asked to perform an arrangement of John Lennon's "Imagine" at a 9/11 memorial concert in Manhattan, where she resides.
Julia plays a cedar-topped Bérnabe made by luthier Darren Hippner and fingerstyle on a Les Paul Standard.
Anastasia Dedik's recent concert appearances included three performances at Carnegie Hall in 2007-2008, solo recitals in Bari, Italy, St. Petersburg, Russia, a performance at the Bechstein Salon in New York for broadcast on ABC Televison, a recital and master class at the University of South Dakota (Sioux Falls), performances at the Juilliard School (New York), concerts in Washington D.C., Los Angeles, Seattle, and San Francisco.
Anastasia is a first-prize winner of the 2001 "Ennio Porrino" International Piano Competition (Italy), 2005 Russian International Piano Competition (USA), the 2006 Lee Biennial Piano Competition (USA), the 2006 Rovero d'Oro International Piano Competition (Italy), the 2007 Buono and Bradshaw International Piano Competition (New York, USA), 2007 Cliburn Institute/Piano Texas Concerto Competition (USA), 2007 Asti International Piano Competition (Italy), and the 2009 Pietro Argento International Piano Competition (Italy).
Anastasia has performed on some of the most important stages in the world, including the internationally renowned Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. as well as Carnegie Hall in New York, The Concertgebouw Hall in Amsterdam; L'Ecole Normale de Musique in Paris, France; The Paganini Conservatory in Genoa, Italy; The Palazzo Farnese in Piacenza, Italy; Teatro Communale, San Remo Italy; and appeared on RAI (the largest Italian television network). She has also performed at The Great Philharmonic Hall, St. Petersburg, Russia; The Rachmaninoff Hall in Moscow, Russia; as well as on the NordDeutscher Rundfunk (NDR TV and Radio), Germany's premier Television and Radio broadcasting Station. Anastasia is contracted for future concerts including upcoming engagements in Italy, Germany and England. She has also played as both a soloist and a collaborative pianist for ABC television here in the USA.
Anastasia has been the recipient of numerous extraordinary national and international awards, including the Harold and Helene Schonberg Piano Scholarship and Susan W. Rose Fellowship at The Juilliard School.
Anastasia has also been performing with the Prima Trio, a chamber group that was formed in United States. The Prima Trio burst onto the international stage when they won both the first prize and the Grand Prize at the Fischoff International Chamber Music Competition. Since then, they have been touring throughout the continental USA. European audiences experienced the Prima Trio for the first time last summer at the Emiglia Romagna Music Festival, Italy, as the Prima Trio made their first European Concert tour through Germany and Italy. The Prima Trio is managed by Lisa Sapinkopf Artists Management.
Anastasia Dedik graduated from the Saint Petersburg Conservatory, Russia in 2004 and continued her education in United States at The Oberlin Conservatory of Music in Ohio and The Juilliard School in New York. Her previous teachers include: Elena Shishko, Valery Vishnevsky, Sedmara Rutstein, and Matti Raekallio. She has participated in master classes with Yoheved Kaplinsky, John O'Connor, Vladimir Krainev and others.
Anastasia Dedik has performed as soloist and featured pianist with orchestras in Russia, Germany, Italy, Greece, Slovakia, Poland, Finland, Estonia, Holland, and the United States. Ms. Dedik's debut professional Solo CD Recording was released in February, 2008 by GPM Records, Recco, Italy.
Oren Fader, guitarist, has performed hundreds of concerts in the U.S., Europe and Asia with a wide range of classical and new music groups, including the Met Chamber Ensemble, Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, New York City Opera, New York City Ballet, New York Philharmonic, Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, Mark Morris Dance Group, Da Capo Chamber Players, New World Symphony, Absolute Ensemble, Poetica Musica and Speculum Musicae.
A champion of new music, he has premiered over 150 works with guitar. He also performs, tours and records with the new music ensembles Cygnus, Fireworks, Glass Farm, and Riot. Mr. Fader has just returned from a three week tour performing in Turkey (Istanbul International Festival), Azerbaijan, and Tajikistan (US State Dept.).
This Summer he performed works of Elliott Carter at the Tanglewood Music Festival.
Mr. Fader can be heard on over 25 commercial recordings and film, including the classical guitar parts for the recent film "Everything is Illuminated". His latest solo recordings include "Another's Fandango", featuring 500 years of guitar music, and "First Flight", a disc of 10 premier solos written for Mr. Fader by New York City composers.
Since 1994, Mr. Fader has been on the guitar and chamber music faculty of the Manhattan School of Music.
Japan-born Mario Gotoh has distinguished herself as a violinist and a violist with an active and versatile career performing music of various styles. She has appeared as soloist and chamber musician across North America, the United Kingdom, France, Switzerland, Netherlands and Japan and her performances have been broadcast worldwide including NPR, CBC, PBS Television, TF1 French Television and radio stations across North America, Europe and Asia. She has performed chamber music with the Emerson String Quartet, Nobuko Imai, Frans Helmerson, Anton Kuerti, Philippe Graffin, Chen Halevi, Michel Lethiec, Juliette Hurel, Marti Roussi, Paul O'Dette and Marcello Nisinman, godson of Astor Piazzolla. Festival appearances include Festival Consonances (France), International Masterclasses Apeldoorn (Netherlands), Banff Centre (Canada), Aspen Music Festival, Boston Early Music Festival, Institute and Festival for Contemporary Performance, International Computer Music Festival, Music@Menlo, Music Academy of the West, and National Foundation for Advancement in the Arts National ARTS Week.
Ms. Gotoh has appeared numerous times as a soloist with orchestras, including performances of concerti and works by Bach, Barber, Dvorak, Glazunov, Mendelssohn, Sarasate, Sibelius, and Vivaldi. As concertmaster, principal violin, and principal viola, Ms. Gotoh's performances include orchestras at the Aspen Music Festival, Banff Centre for the Arts, Music Academy of the West, SUNY Stony Brook and the Eastman School of Music. She is also committed to performing baroque music on early instruments as well commissioning and premiering contemporary works.
Dedicated to teaching, Ms. Gotoh has been teaching both violin and viola with several institutions. She is the violin teacher at the Manhattan School of Music Pre-College Camp MSM, and has been the Violin Instructor of undergraduates at SUNY Stony Brook where she taught her own studio of violinists since 2009. She is currently the Viola Instructor at SUNY Suffolk. As Chamber Music Instructor, she teaches undergraduate ensembles at SUNY Stony Brook and is on faculty at Stony Brook Pre-College and Community Music Programs. Ms. Gotoh is currently a Doctor of Musical Arts candidate in a dual-degree program for violin and viola performance at SUNY Stony Brook under the guidance of Philip Setzer, Soovin Kim, Nicholas Cords, Daniel Panner, Pamela Frank and Philippe Graffin. She is a graduate of the Eastman School of Music (B.M. and Performance Certificate) and SUNY Stony Brook (M.M).
Mario currently lives in New York City and is passionate about cooking, and exploring cuisines, cultures and new places.
Georgia hails from the stunning harbor city of Sydney, Australia. She was awarded her Bachelor's Degree majoring in Vocal Performance at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music. Georgia departed Sydney for the bright lights of Manhattan in early 2002.
Since residing in New York, Georgia has worked as a composer and singer for Eric Kaye Music Inc; had songs placed on Queer Eye For The Straight Guy (Bravo) and Joan of Arcadia (CBS); she has sung backup for many artists including Meatloaf (on his 2010 album Hang Cool Teddy Bear, Mercury Records), La La Brooks (original lead singer for the '60s Phil Spector girl group The Crystals), the multi-platinum pop-rock band Wheatus (Sony/BMG), R'n'B singer/songwriter/rapper Shontelle (Syndicated Rhythm Productions/Universal Motown Records), rock band MrNorth (Rock Ridge Music), and for singer-songwriter Mike Viola (Sony/RPM, Good Morning Monkey Records); she has also recorded an extensive catalogue of songs for artists (including Cher) and recorded vocals for supermodel Gisele Bundchen.
Georgia has lent her speaking voice to videos for the Internet media company Howcast Media Inc. She has been a voice artist for ESL programs (McGraw Hill), Amazon.com book trailers, and she's narrated company videos for Johnson & Johnson. She has performed in several off-off Broadway musicals, including "Hell Hole Honeys" (written by Dave Ogrin, co-producer/engineer for Grandmaster Flash). She has recorded jingles for many TV commercials (including Sleepy's, Fisher Price, Venus), and appeared in other commercials as an actress. She has hosted an entertainment news show called "The Brief" (Avignon Bound Media) and a cooking show called "The Cook's Plate" (Simon Feldman Studio, Inc). Georgia recently appeared on NBC's "Celebrity Apprentice" singing jingles for celebs Bret Michaels and Cyndi Lauper.
Georgia is a member of the electro-glam/new wave group Whore's Mascara, and the electro-pop outfit Pop Smear (produced by Roger Fife whose credits include Tricky, Cyndi Lauper, Antony and The Johnsons). Georgia also formed the electro-rock duo Die Kinder, with whom she released an EP entitled "Needs."
Georgia's acting career has led her to appear as a lead role in two short films for Fever Dreams Inc (under Media Blasters): "The Pick Up" and "Damnation." These two films were subsequently merged with a third short to create a feature length film entitled "Late Fee." She has also starred in the films "Bloodwings" (Chainsaw Kiss Productions), "Lullaby" (Lickerish Media), "The Affordable Apartment" (Maximum Exposure Films) and "Running Time" (SuccessfuLiving Films).
Etan Haziza has been both a performer and dedicated teacher in the NYC area for over 10 years. He began studying music at the age of 8 years old, studying classical piano until he was 13. It was then he picked up guitar and started to immerse himself with rock, folk, classical, and jazz music. Etan then attended William Patterson University where he earned a BA in Jazz Performance, and it was then that he decided to move to NYC and pursue his career as a performer and educator. Upon moving to the city, Etan attended the American Institute of Guitar, where he studied classical guitar for 5 years with world-renowned guitarist Yasha Koffman.
Etan is now a full-time teacher and performer in NYC. He has performed with artists including Steve LaSpina, James Williams, Tyshawn Sorey, Yasha Koffman, and Kurt Rosenwinkel.
In addition to his private practice for teaching, he has also been on staff at BMCC CUNY where he taught beginner guitar group classes for small children and is also the lead guitar instructor for the Trilok Fusion Arts program in Fort Greene, Brooklyn.
"N'Kenge, a petite fireball, is the all-around entertainer. She sings, she dances and she works the crowd. She's a delight in her audience-interactive Minnie the Moocher segment, and she's all sass and shimmying flash as the sexy flapper Miss Celie (from the Color Purple)." Pam Kragen, North County Times, San Diego
N'Kenge, this multifaceted upcoming young star, is notable both for her vocal range, versatility and stage presence. This native New Yorker has performed internationally in opera, recital, musical theater, jazz, and pop. N'Kenge has just returned from starring in The Genius of Ray Charles musical at the Theater Royal Haymarket in West End, London and has toured worldwide giving over 200 concerts. N'Kenge sang in the world premiere of Marion Caffey's 3 Mo'Divas where she received the prestigious Helen Hayes Nomination for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Musical. This season, N'Kenge starred in the new Stephen Sondheim musical Being Alive that was directed by Billy Porter, and will be a featured soloist with various symphonies such as the Phoenix Symphony, the Detroit Symphony and the Baltimore Symphony. N'Kenge will be collaborating with acclaimed Playwright/Director Rajendra Ramoon Maharaj in a Off Broadway musical production featuring Tony Nominated Actress Vivian Reed entitled N'Kenge-The Musical.
N'Kenge has sung for Secretary General Kofi Annan for the United Nations Visionary Awards and Colin Powell when he was honored by the George C. Marshall Foundation. She was a featured soloist in a live broadcast from the Library of Congress, has headlined the Children's Defense Fund Gala and has made solo appearances at the White House (Clinton Administration), The Kennedy Center, Carnegie Hall Weill Recital Hall and has sung the National Anthem multiple times for the Mets at Shea Stadium.
Maria Johnson is a Brooklyn-based flutist and teacher who has appeared at such venues as Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, Symphony Space, Le Poisson Rouge, and Roulette, as well as in Italy and China. Maria has eight years of experience teaching flute and piano and has served on the faculty of several music schools, including the Kaufman Center, Long Island Conservatory, and Soyulla Artists.
She holds a B.M. from the University of Kentucky and a M.A. from New York University, where she studied with Gary Schocker. At NYU, she won the Wind and Percussion Concerto Competition and performed as a soloist with the NYU Wind Ensemble. She also spent a summer abroad at NYU's campus in Florence, where she studied 20th century repertoire, free improvisation, and extended technique with Roberto Fabbriciani, and performed with the NYU New Music and Dance Ensemble. Shortly after graduation, Maria was invited to rejoin the University of Kentucky Wind Ensemble on its tour of China, where she performed as part of the Olympic Torch Relay Celebrations.
Maria continues to perform new classical music with Circles and Lines, Mimesis Ensemble, and the Electric Eel Multimedia Ensemble, and her world premiere of Little Respite (Lemmon) was aired on WNYC's Q2 in the fall of 2010.
In addition to her expertise in new and traditional repertoire, Maria's passion for opera has led her to play with such groups as Opera Mission, Bleecker Street Opera, After Dinner Opera, Opera for Humanity, and One World Symphony.
Composer-conductor Joseph Jones began his professional musical career at the age of 13 as a violinist and timpanist-percussionist. A native of Rhode Island, Mr. Jones went on to study composition and conducting at the Peabody Conservatory in Baltimore, studying with Nicholas Maw and Dr. Harlan Parker. Mr. Jones has also been a conducting fellow at the Aspen Music Festival, and appeared with the Moscow Symphony and Kuban Philharmonic. He has also worked in master classes with David Zinman, Vladimir Ponkin, Michael Morgan, Murray Sidlin, Daniel Lewis, Thomas Wilkins, Mark Gibson, Victoria Bond, and Diane Wittry. Mr. Jones presently lives and freelances in New York City.
Iris Jortner, cellist, is a native of Israel. She has performed in important venues in Israel, Europe, China, Australia, and the United States.
Iris has collaborated in chamber music performances with Yefim Bronfman, Michael Tree, Itamar Golan, Levon Chilingrian, the Orion Quartet, the Avalon Quartet, and the Apple Hill Chamber Players. Iris was a member of the Aviv Quartet from 1997-2002. She has recorded the Hoffmeister Quartets for Naxos, and music for oud, cello and piano by Middle Eastern and Western composers for Live Classics. Iris was on the faculty of the University of Virginia from 2006-2008 where she taught cello and chamber music, and currently teaches cello at Queens College. Last season she performed as a soloist with the Jerusleam Camerata Orchestra Haydn's concerto in D Major. She is the artistic director of the Rosemarie and Robin Russell Family Concert series on Roosevelt Island, where she performs regularly and presents chamber music concerts.
In the summers, she is on the faculty of the the Apple Hill festival in New Hampshire and is principal cellist of Opera North Orchestra. She performed in numerous festivals including Verbier, Banff, Tanglewood, Taos, Prussia Cove, Dubrovnick, Kfar Blum, and Jerusalem International Chamber Music Festival, "Encounters," Rolandseck, and Schlern. Her teachers include Uri Vardi, Aldo Parisot, Bernard Greenehouse, Paul Katz, Timothy Eddy, and members of the Alban Berg Quartet.
Matthew Katz-Bohen is a session guitar player, composer and teacher. With ten years of music teaching experience, he has taught at Camp Encore, Soyulla, the Musika school, and more. He is the recipient of the Abe Olman Scholarship for Excellence in Songwriting. Matt has performed with Tony Bennet, Princess Superstar Lady Miss Kier, Jody Watley and others, and has also toured internationally with his band, Daddy.
Kyu-Young Kim is one of the most versatile and accomplished violinists of his generation. Hailed by John von Rhein of the Chicago Tribune for his "flawless musical and technical command", Kim is an active soloist and chamber musician. Most recently he performed in Carnegie Hall and in the major halls of Europe, including the Musikverein (Vienna), the Concertgebouw (Amsterdam), the Philharmonie (Cologne), the Cité de la Musique (Paris), the Mozarteum (Salzburg), the Palais des Beaux Arts (Brussels), the Festpielhaus (Baden-Baden), and the Megaron (Athens). As a founding member of the Daedalus Quartet, winners of the Grand Prize at the 2001 Banff International String Quartet Competition, he has toured throughout the U.S., Europe, Canada, Japan and Panama, and is now a member of Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center's Chamber Music Two Program. He has appeared as soloist with the KBS Symphony Orchestra (Seoul, Korea), Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, of which he served as Associate Concertmaster for five years, as well as the Amadeus Chamber Orchestra of Poland, the Juilliard Pre-College Orchestra, and the Bloomington Symphony Orchestra. As a recitalist, he has performed in Japan, Germany, New Zealand, New York, Minneapolis, Chicago, Philadelphia and Boston.
Mr. Kim is also the founding member of the Soyulla Ensemble with his wife, cellist Pitnarry Shin and pianist Wei-Yi Yang. Soyulla, winners of a 2002 McKnight Fellowship, toured South Korea in June 2006, made an acclaimed debut at Alice Tully Hall, Lincoln Center in 2005 and has released a CD of live performances on the Renegade Classics label. As a former member of the Pacifica String Quartet, Mr. Kim won the prestigious Naumburg Chamber Music Award in 1998 and served as an artist-in-residence for National Public Radio's "Performance Today." Mr. Kim's other chamber music activities have included collaborations with pianist Gary Graffman and the Juilliard String Quartet, and performances with the Chicago Contemporary Players, the Aspen Contemporary Ensemble, the DaCapo Chamber Players, and the New Juilliard Ensemble. He has toured on four continents with the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, and has performed with the Sejong Soloists.
Widely recognized for his teaching and musical outreach activities, Kim has served on the faculties of the University of Chicago, the Music Institute of Chicago, and the Interlochen Summer Festival, among others, and has given outreach concerts to young audiences throughout the United States. He is currently on the faculty of the Music Performance Program at Columbia University. Mr. Kim has received degrees from the Curtis Institute, the Juilliard School, and the Cleveland Institute of Music, and has studied with Donald Weilerstein, Robert Mann, Jaime Laredo, Yumi Scott and Shirley Givens.
Mezzo-soprano Korin Kormick has been acclaimed for her luscious voice and commanding stage presence. Her operatic credits include the title characters in Menotti's The Medium and The Old Maid and the Thief, Marcellina in Le Nozze di Figaro, Mrs. Grose in Britten's The Turn of the Screw, Ma Moss in Copland's The Tender Land, and Katisha in The Mikado by Gilbert and Sullivan. In addition, she created the leading roles in Chasing a Precedent and Nyiramachabelli, two world-premiere operas about the lives of Helen Thomas and Dian Fossey, for the Kentucky Opera VISIONS program.
Ms. Kormick has been heard in concert with the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra, the Louisville Youth Orchestra, and the Genessee Valley Orchestra. She has performed the alto solos in Bach's B Minor Mass, Handel's Messiah, Vaughan Williams' Magnificat, Haydn's Lord Nelson Mass, and Mozart's Requiem. In recent years, Ms. Kormick was awarded Third Prize in the Friends of Eastman Opera Voice Competition, received the Second Place award in the Jessie Kneisel Lieder Competition, and was a regional finalist in the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions.
A graduate of Centre College with a dual degree in Music and French, Ms. Kormick completed her Master of Music degree at the University of Louisville School of Music, and recently finished post-graduate study at the Eastman School of Music leading to a Doctor of Musical Arts degree in vocal performance and literature.
Having grown up in a musical family, Dr. Ling Leng began playing the piano at the age of three in her native China. She has performed extensively as a soloist and chamber musician in United States, as well as abroad in China, Canada and Germany.
Dr. Leng has more than ten years of teaching experience. She was a full time teacher at Beijing's largest piano academy, and after coming to the United States, still manages to balance her time between performance and teaching. She is known for her ability to inspire and motivate young beginners, and also teaches a wide variety of adult students from beginning to advanced levels. Students learn the joy of creating music, and the importance of being persistent.
She has collaborated on recitals with Toby Oft, principal Trombone of the BSO; Mike Roylance, principal Tuba of the BSO; Don Lucas, president of the International Trombone Association and associate professor of Boston University; Gwendolyn Thrasher, associate professor of Percussion at the University of Michigan, and players and teachers from Montreal, Taiwan Symphony Orchestras.
Dr. Leng received a Bachelor of Music degree in Piano Performance from Shenyang Conservatory in China and then a Master in Piano Pedagogy from Beijing Normal University. After coming to the United States, she received a Master of Music in Piano Performance from the Boston Conservatory, studying with Dr. Jonathan Bass, as well as a Doctor of Musical Arts in Collaborative Piano from the Boston University College for the Arts. She currently holds the position of staff pianist at the New England Conservatory and Boston Conservatory.
Paul Lincoln is an active performer and teacher in the New York City area. During college, as a member of the Harvard Krokodiloes, he made his solo and conducting debut at Carnegie Hall. Later engagements include the Cairo Opera House, Sydney Opera House, Rome Festival and an invitation to sing at the Kennedy Center Millennium Celebrations.
Paul has performed in numerous operas and musical theater productions around the world including the original cast of the First National tour of Cabaret. Paul helped develop, music direct and played the part of Euturpe in the world premier of Lyrical Langston: His Muse for Music. Later, he produced a successful commercial run of this show in association with the Lost Nation Theater.
Paul teaches and coaches in New York and works regularly with Tony award winning Broadway performers as well as professional opera singers. He teaches privately and as a Soyulla Artist.
Paul is also a member of the California Bar and volunteers as a lawyer for environmental organizations.
Reviews of Lisa Liu's violin performance of "Honest Music," a work written especially for her by fellow Juilliard grad and current Bjork collaborator Nico Muhly, call the piece and her playing "complex and expressionist," "goose-bump raising," "lilting and frenetic," and "beautiful". What sets Lisa apart from other classically trained performers is her hunger to translate the depth and complexity of her work in the classical genre to her creative expression in other musical styles. Since graduating from Juilliard with a Bachelor's and Master's degree in violin performance, Lisa Liu has defined herself artistically by transcending the limits of her classical education, bringing a unique combination of virtuosity and nuance to a phenomenally diverse range of musical projects. Her collaborations represent a vast spectrum of genres and styles, from Britney Spears to the Mahavishnu Project, Elton John to Junior Vasquez, Enya to Aerosmith. "Jumping into any style with any group of people gives me an opportunity to push the limits of what is expected of a violinist in these different contexts," she says.
Harnessing the rockstar wattage of electric violin and leaping headfirst into the worlds of hip-hop, funk and electronica, Lisa has created a codified but unique violin language, breaking away from stereotypical string pads and fillers and navigating gracefully between improvised riff bearing lines, complex rhythmic stylings and electrifying solos. As founding member of Different Creatures, Lisa has placed the diversity of her violin's melodic, harmonic and rhythmic possibilities at the core of the band's sound, consistently challenging her bandmates to transcend stylist boundaries and create new musical worlds.
Recordings include: "Chantress" and "Live from the Hookah Bar," by Bellyhouse, "Speaks Volumes," by Nico Muhly, "World Voice," a project for the Pope, and "The Lost Christmas Eve," by The Trans-Siberian Orchestra, recipient of a gold record sales award.
Artist collaborations: Elton John, Josh Groban, Michael Buble, Mariah Carey, Britney Spears, Aerosmith, Wyclef Jean, Wynonna, Michael Mcdonald, Enya, Celine Dion, Victor Calderone, Junior Vasquez, Vivian Green, Mahavishnu Project, Sara Haze, Dangerous LLC.
TV shows: "The View," "Good Morning America," "The Today Show," "Late Night With Conan O'Brien," "CBS's Macy's Thanksgiving Parade Special", "NBC's Rockefeller Christmas Special," "AOL Live Studio Sessions," "Live w/ Regis and Kelly"
Venues: Madison Square Garden, Continental Arena, Jones Beach Theatre, Radio City Music Hall, Beacon Theatre, Hammerstein Ballroom, Carnegie Hall, Avery Fisher Hall, Alice Tully Hall, The Whitney Museum
Edward A. Malave (viola) was born on Long Island, New York where he began his musical training on the viola under Irene Stitt. From this time onward, he has won many awards and competitions, participated in various summer music festivals such as Meadowmount (NYS), Bowdoin (Maine), Killington (VT), Hart Summer School of Music (CT), The International Music Festival of Costa Rica, (San Jose, Costa Rica) and the International Music Festival of Evian (France), studied privately and coached with renowned teachers such as Robert Mann, Lillian Fuchs, Felix Galamir, Roland Vamos, Margaret Pardee, Albert Fuller, Patinka Kopec and Arnold Steinhardt as well as performed with orchestras, chamber music and in recitals extensively throughout the USA, Europe, Asia, the Middle East, Canada, the South Pacific, as well as Central and South America's. He holds both Bachelor's and Master's degrees in viola performance from The Juilliard School receiving the William Gluck fellowship where he studied under the late William Lincer.
Eddy has led a wide variety of musical roles during his career. He has performed for President Bill Clinton (Israel Forum Policy, Mideast Peace Talks) as well as other dignitary's worldwide and at the United Nations. Mr. Malave has participated in master classes under Heidi Castleman, Karen Tuttle and Don McGuiness and has also performed with Placido Domingo, Sir Yehudi Menuhin, and Maestro Kurt Masur just to name a few. He was a founding member of the Arethusa String Quartet, has done 3 tours with the Juilliard Strings on board the Q E 2 and can be heard on cd with the young virtuoso group, The Se Jong Soloists (1995).
He has also added to performing and recording regularly with popular artists such as U2's Bono (Net Aid at Giants Stadium, NJ), Barry White, Sir Elton John @ Radio City Music Hall ( with The Juilliard and Royal Academy of Music Orchestra's),Clay Aiken, Barbara Cook, Chantel, Craig Anderson (Wake Up in New York MTV video), A.R. Rahman (tour of USA and Canada), Patti LuPone (Songs From the Heart in Lincoln Center and tour of USA), DJ/producer Victor Calderone (Caligula and Provacature) Ted Mason of Modern English, Bryin Dale, Derek Rush and with Bryan Adams on MTV's:"unplugged".
Always looking for adventure, he has also performed at La Mama's East Village experimental theater in "Spring Awakening," at the Knitting Factory with Gut Bucket, Anti-Social music at Cami Hall and at La TEA, Ambitious orchestra at Piano's and with the Martha Graham Dance Company at the Joyce Theater among many other fantastic projects. Eddy has taken to also performing with his Yamaha electric viola and working with various DJ/producers such as: Eddie Baez, Gomi, Hex Hector, Razor and Junior Vasquez Music in some of New York City's most popular clubs and venues, like: Avalon @ Limelight, SBNY (Splash), Centrofly, Taj, The Club @ Stonewall, XL, Crowbar and Spirit.
In addition, Mr. Malave is also a teacher of the Alexander Technique receiving his certification from The American Center for the Alexander Technique (A.C.A.T.) He has studied with world renowned teachers such as Deborah Caplan, Bill Connington, Pearl Ausubel, Thom Lemons, Barbara Conable, Ann Matthews, and Pedro de Alcantara. He has assisted other teachers such as Judith Stern, Barbara Kent, Sarnel Ognus and Joan Frost in presenting the Technique in a variety of places such as A.C.A.T., the medical field, for performing artists, and various corporations. He has also presented the Alexander Technique as a solo guest teacher for the British Columbia Music Teachers Conference in Surrey, B.C., Canada, at the American Institute of Musical Studies (A.I.M.S.) in Graz, Austria, at the National Conservatory of Music in Amman, Jordan and currently is teaching the technique for the music department at New York University.
Mr. Malave currently teaches privately as well as serving on the faculty of the Soyulla Performing Arts Program, Third street music settlement, (NYC.), The Westchester Conservatory (White Plains), and The Port Jefferson Music Academy (L.I.). He also received his teaching certification of the Suzuki Method from the School for Strings in NYC, has a thriving career as a freelance musician performing in X- Mas Carol @ Madison Square Garden, on various Broadway shows, currently on: Les Miserables, Spamalot, and Phantom of the Opera (past shows include: Lion King, Kiss Me Kate, Into The Woods, Flower Drum Song, Nine, Gypsy, Frogs, Bombay Dreams, Fiddler on the Roof, The Woman in White), off- Broadway shows with Shequida: Opera For Dummies, Popera, JesseNormous, with the Berkshire Opera (Massachusetts), Sarasota Opera( Florida), the Lake String Quartet @ Yellowstone National Park (Wyoming), with the Orchestra of St. Lukes, the Prometheus Chamber Orchestra , Philharmonia Virtuosi, Jupiter Symphony, ABT( American Ballet Theater) Orchestra in City Center, SAB (School of American Ballet) Orchestra in Lincoln Center, The Chelsea Symphony, the New York Pops Orchestra at Carnegie Hall, and the Joliva String Quartet along with many other different groups and venues throughout the greater NY Metropolitan area.
Eddy has held the principal viola chair positions with the Prince George Symphony and Kamloops Symphony Orchestra's (both in B.C., Canada), the Orquestra Filarmonica de Lima ( Lima, Peru) and held the principal viola chair with the Key West Symphony Orchestra in Key West, Florida under the direction of Maestra Sebrina Alfonso for 3 seasons. He has also completed a Baroque recital as well as giving a master class for the viola at the National Conservatory of Music in Amman, Jordan.
Marisa Michelson is an actor/singer/composer living in NYC. She is the recipient of the prestigious 2008 Shen Foundation Grant, and the only woman selected for Washington D.C.'s Signature Theater's "American Musical Voices Project: the Next Generation. This past summer, her original musical (written with Joshua H. Cohen), Still Life With Toe Shoes had its world premiere with Old Deerfield Productions in western Massachusetts. Marisa and Joshua have also been commissioned by the Prospect Theater Company to create a short musical based on Rene Magritte's painting "The Lovers." Marisa's full-length musical, Hotel Sarajevo, which she co-conceived with Stephanie Johnstone and for which she wrote book, music and lyrics, has received readings at CAP 21/NYU and Smith College and is currently being developed for education and outreach with NY- based QuoVadimus Theatre. She traveled to India on a fellowship to compose music and study Hindustani singing in the Global Arts Village for three months and was selected to participate in the New Dramatists Guild's Composer-Librettist studio. Marisa graduated with a B.F.A in Drama from NYU's Tisch School of the Arts. She has studied composition with Adam Guettel and is the winner of the 2006 St. Botolph Award for Excellence in Composition.
Marisa is currently pursuing advanced teaching and singing studies with the Libero Canto School of singing based in Vienna. With adults, she brings a relaxed, supportive and holistic approach to freeing the voice, and with children, an emphasis on fun and confidence. Marisa is also an advanced pianist whose approach to teaching piano to children encourages composition and experiencing the piano as an instrument for personal expression. She is also a yoga teacher who has trained in Vinyasa and Iyengar in the United States and India.
Jeremy Eichler of the New York Times called violinist Ayano Ninomiya's 2004 New York debut recital at Carnegie's Weill Recital Hall "deeply communicative and engrossing." Second-prize winner of the 2003 Walter W. Naumburg International Violin Competition and winner of Astral Artistic Services' 2003 National Auditions, Ms.Ninomiya is also the recent winner of the Washington and the Lili Boulanger Memorial awards. As a recipient of the 2005 Beebe Fellowship, she lived in Budapest, Hungary until 2007 researching the Bartok Archives. Her recording of the complete works for violin by Larry Bell, "The Book of Moonlight," was listed on Philadephia's City paper as one of the "Top 10 Classical Recordings of 2003."
Recent and upcoming performances include solo performances at the Ravinia Festival, with the Zurich Symphony, and the Kalamazoo and Bellevue symphonies. Under Astral Artistic Services' auspices, Ms. Ninomiya appeared recently in her Philadelphia debut recital, piano trios with pianist Claude Frank, led the Haddonfield Symphony Chamber Orchestra in Vivaldi's The Four Seasons, and performed on the "Rising Stars" series at Philadelphia's Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts and with other Astral artists at Carnegie Hall's Weill Recital Hall.
After making her debut on Opening Night of the Boston Pops in 1999 under Keith Lockhart, Ms. Ninomiya has appeared extensively across the U.S. as a soloist, recitalist, and chamber musician Over the last few seasons, she was featured as soloist in Sofia, Bulgaria, and with the Harrisburg, Haddonfield, and Southwest Florida Symphony, among others. As a 2002 JAL "Classic Special New Artist," Ms. Ninomiya was featured in recitals throughout Japan, including a debut recital at Tokyo's Suntory Hall. She has also performed on the "Rising Stars" series at the Ravinia Festival, at the Gardner Museum in Boston, on the Myra Hess Memorial Concert Series in Chicago, and on the Bank Boston "Emerging Artist" Series. Her many outreach and community recitals have brought her from Bethlehem, NH to Denton, MD.
An avid chamber musician, she joined "Musicians from Marlboro" for their 2005 France tour and 2004 U.S. tour. She has been invited to perform with the "Young Artists from the Steans Institute" of the Ravinia Festival, for the Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival, on New York City's WQXR station, at the Metropolitan Art Museum, Bargemusic, and spent several seasons at the Marlboro, Caramoor, Bridgehampton, Charlottesville and Olympic and Prussia Cove music festivals, among others. She is a member of the conductorless string orchestra ECCO.
Ms. Ninomiya began her violin studies at the age of seven in a public school program in Newton, MA. She graduated magna cum laude from Harvard College with a joint degree in Music and French in 2001 where she also was awarded the David McCord Prize. She has a Master's degree from the Juilliard School where she studied with Robert Mann. Her other teachers include Miriam Fried, Michele Auclair, Hyo Kang, and Eszter Perenyi.
Audio sample:Sonata no. 1 in A minor, op. 105 Mit leidenschaftlichen Ausdruck
Vanessa Perea is a New Jersey native vocalist. She holds a B.A. in Music Education from New Jersey City University, where she studied voice, in different styles such as classical, musical theater, and jazz. At the highest degree of authenticity, beautiful sound and sweeping range, Vanessa shows a confidence and poise beyond her years. She has shared the stage with James Moody, Jimmy Heath, Eddie Palmieri, Charles McPherson, Randy Brecker, Dwayne Burno and George Cables. Vanessa's future continues to grow brighter with her highly anticipated debut release coming in 2012, featuring Cyrus Chestnut, John Lee, and Mark Whitfield.
Vanessa can be seen performing at jazz clubs in the NY/NJ area. Her distinguished appearances include most famous clubs such as The Blue Note, Cleopatra's Needle, Dizzy's Club Coca Cola, Smalls, Zinc Bar, Miles Café and Trumpets. Vanessa is also a featured artist for the New Brunswick Jazz Project, based in New Brunswick, NJ.
Clarinetist/bass clarinetist Liz Player performs with the New Amsterdam Symphony Orchestra, Ensemble du Monde, One World Symphony and West Harlem Winds, which she founded the summer of 2004. She attended the Aaron Copland School of Music at Queens College as a Mellon Minority Undergraduate Fellow and there gave her solo debut with the Queens College Orchestra. Since then, she has been a featured soloist with the Greenwich Village Orchestra and Ensemble du Monde and has performed in venues such as Carnegie Hall, CAMI Hall, Merkin Concert Hall and Brooklyn's Forecast Music. Former teachers and master class coaches include David Krakauer, David Glazer, Ronald Roseman, Stanley Drucker and William Blount.
Michelle Rios' Broadway credits include Aurea Agron in Paul Simon's "The Capeman", and featured roles in both "The Sound of Music" starring Richard Chamberlain, and most recently, the Tony Award nominated revival "Man of la Mancha" starring Brian Stokes Mitchell and Mary Elizabeth Mastroantonio. Other credits include: "In the Heights" at 37 Arts, Elizabeth Swados' "Missionaries" at NYS&F/La MaMa, ETC., "Dogeaters" (workshop) at the Public Theater directed by Michael Greif, "Metamorphoses" at Weston Playhouse, "Unmerciful Good Fortune" and "Miriam's Flowers" both at INTAR, "Bitterroot" and "Star Messengers" at La MaMa, ETC. (directed by Paul Zimet), "Sleepwalkers" at the Alliance Theater Co., New Dramatists, the Director's Co., Geva Theater Center, Lincoln Center, the Kennedy Center, Berkshire Theater Festival, etc. National Tours: Helena Landless in "The Mystery of Edwin Drood". TV/Film: "Law & Order", "Third Watch", "Guiding Light", "Washington Heights", and is featured in Showtime Network's "Dirt" (dir. Nancy Savoca)
The consummate performer whose extensive repertoire and passionate, innovative interpretations connect her audiences to a profound experience of musical culture.
For the past two decades, Ms. Schwartz has been exploring all forms of music for piano. She has collaborated with some of the finest musicians, singers and dancers in the world. She has a profund, abiding understanding of her natural abilities and a deep gratitude for those who appreciate the expression of her spirit through her artistry at the keyboard.
Kristi Shade began playing the harp at the age of two, and has since become one of the preeminent emerging harpists in New York City, regularly performing with symphony orchestras both in New York and across the country. She is currently the principal harpist for the Philharmonic Orchestra of the Americas, the Chamber Orchestra of New York, the Astoria Symphony, One World Symphony and Ensemble 212.
In recent years, Kristi has played for several Broadway shows, including A Little Night Music starring Bernadette Peters, Wicked, Gypsy starring Patti Lupone and The Apple Tree starring Kristin Chenowith. She has performed multiple times with hit popular bands, including The Killers and The All American Rejects. Television appearances include The Today Show, Late Night with David Letterman, The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson and All My Children.
Kristi received her training at the University of Miami and the Manhattan School of Music, where she now teaches. Since graduating from these prestigious institutions, Kristi has played countless engagements both at home and abroad. She has toured the world with the Philharmonic Orchestra of the Americas and she has played for innumerable weddings and private events in the tri-state area. In the past she has been a participant of the National Orchestra Institute and the Henri Mancini Institute.
Kristi has been the guest harpist for many orchestras, including the Florida Philharmonic, the Brooklyn Symphony Orchestra, the Alhambra Orchestra of Florida, and the Brooklyn Repertory Opera. Her solo engagements have included performances of Ravel's Introduction and Allegro with the Philharmonic Orchestra of the Americas, Ravel's Introduction and Allegro and Mozart's Concerto for Flute and Harp with Ensemble 212, as well as Mozart's Concerto for Flute and Harp with the Astoria Symphony.
Hailed by the Concert Artists Guild as "a soprano of rare emotional power and range of expression," Jae Min Shin is an internationally acclaimed and awarded opera singer and recitalist. Her many awards include First Prize at the Young Artists International Competition, the Web Concert Hall International Competition, the Siena Festival Grant, and first place in the Concert Artist Guild vocal category. Her recent performances include Alice Tully Hall, Lincoln Center, as a soloist with The Soyulla Ensemble; Riverside Church, as a featured soloist; and she is currently a finalist in the Joy of Singing competition. Ms. Shin has also performed as a soloist with the K.B.S. Orchestra under the direction of Yusako Sado and was chosen to perform the role of Musetta at the Seoul Arts Center for which she was hailed by Classical Opera Magazine as "impeccable" and as the "new, fresh air lighting up the opera world."
Ms. Shin's operatic performances include Adina in L'Elisir d'Amore, Norina in Don Pasquale, Zerlina in Don Giovanni, Lauretta in Gianni Schicchi, and The Queen of the Night in The Magic Flute. During her career, Ms. Shin has performed under such distinguished conductors as Julius Rudel, Randall Behr, Lawrence Foster, Yusako Sado, James Colon and David Zinman.
Ms. Shin holds a Bachelor's and Master's Degree in Music from The Juilliard School and also studied piano and chemistry at Northwestern University.
Ms. Shin is Founder and Director of Soyulla Artists, a performing arts program celebrating its 11th season this year. The concept of Soyulla Artists originated from her experiences while a student at The Juilliard School. Under a scholarship from Juilliard, she was able to spend time teaching children who would not otherwise have had an opportunity to study music. Through this program, she also performed for the elderly and those with terminal illnesses and mental illnesses. These experiences allowed Jae to witness the tremendous benefits and the healing power of music and the arts, and she has tirelessly pursued the goal of making the arts accessible to as many in her community as possible.
Cellist Pitnarry Shin is a dynamic soloist and chamber musician and has been praised in Strad magazine for her beautiful tone and passionate interpretations in her New York debut recital at Weill Hall, Carnegie Hall. She has toured throughout the United States, Europe, and her native Korea. Ms. Shin has performed as soloist with the Korean Broadcasting System (KBS) Symphony Orchestra, the Yale Symphony Orchestra, the Springfield Symphony Orchestra, the Queens Symphony Orchestra, and the Bloomington Symphony Orchestra. She has also appeared at many of the leading international festivals including the Ravinia Festival, the Edinburgh and Dartington Festivals (England), Colmar and Evian Festivals (France), Banff Festival (Canada), and the Piatigorsky Seminar. Ms. Shin was the recipient of a Fulbright Grant to Germany, which allowed her to participate and perform in several European festivals such as the Manchester Festival, the Kronberg Festival, and the Ensemble InterContemporain Summer Festival, where she played solo cello under Pierre Boulez.
As a chamber musician, Ms. Shin has toured throughout South Korea with the Chung Trio. She is a recipient of the Lincoln Center Chamber Music Prize and is a founding member of the Soyulla Duo, along with her husband, violinist Kyu-Young Kim. The Soyulla Duo won the prestigious McKnight Fellowship in 2002 and has toured throughout the United States and Korea. Ms. Shin can also be heard on the Grammy nominated recording of Dominick Argento's music on the Gothic label. Ms. Shin's other projects have included collaborations with Yo Yo Ma at the Tanglewood Festival on the Silk Road Project, the American premiere of Paul McCartney's production of "A Garland For Linda" to help raise money for cancer research, and touring with the Mark Morris Dance Company as solo cellist.
Ms. Shin has served as co-principal cellist with the London Symphony Orchestra and as acting principal of the Singapore Symphony Orchestra. She has also played with the New York Philharmonic and the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra. She is currently a member of the Minnesota Orchestra. She received her musical education at the Curtis Institute of Music, Yale University Music School, where she received the Aldo Parisot-Yo Yo Ma Prize upon graduation, and the Juilliard School of Music. Her teachers include Myung Wha Chung, David Soyer, Aldo Parisot, Jerome Carrington, Maria Kliegel, and Karine Georgian.
Audio sample:Haydn Cello Concerto in C Major—Allegro molto
Christina Sterrett is a music therapist and teacher in the New York City Area. She is a graduate of New York University with a Master's degree in music therapy, and is a Board Certified Music Therapist with the American Music Therapy Association. As a music therapist, Christina works with clients of all ages to address physical, emotional, cognitive, and social needs, and specializes in working with children with developmental delays.
Christina has performed in venues such as Lincoln Center, Royal Albert Hall, and Westminster Abbey, and has worked with renowned conductors and composers such as Moses Hogan and Academy Award® winner Marvin Hamlisch. She has appeared in numerous musical productions, and is an accomplished vocalist and pianist and an avid teacher as well. Christina loves working with kids, and her gentle and compassionate approach has made her a favorite among Soyulla's young students.
Shara Strand made her NYC stage debut at the Vineyard Theater at age 12, and was instantly bitten by the performance bug. She started vocal training at age 8, and by the time Shara was 18, she was performing solo at Lincoln Center. A few short years later, she was winning on the televised "Showtime at The Apollo" at the legendary Apollo Theater, with her strong rendition of Oleta Adam's "Get Here". Thankfully, the industry was watching, and Shara landed an opening spot in the Pat Benatar/Neil Geraldo tour. Shara is a SAG, EQUITY, and AFTRA actress, and has been featured in "Hitch", "Law and Order: CI", "Gossip Girl" and many others. She was recently honored to gain the title of "Pop Fenom" Season 2 at one of the internet's largest talent competitions, famecast.com.
In the last year, Shara has toured the country as a solo artist, and her most favorite shows have been at Dewey Beach's Chickfest in Delaware, Pittsburgh Pride Festival, and Love Jones showcase at Greenhouse, NYC. She is currently booked for a mainstage performance at Atlanta Pride for early October. After completing a successful summer residency at NYC's well known club, The Bitter End, Shara is set for a year of amazing live shows. Her single "Not Gonna Miss You" is due out the first quarter of the year. Shara holds a BFA from NYU's Tisch School of the Arts (CAP 21 and Playright's Horizons Programs).
Italian pianist Diego Tornelli has established himself as a passionate collaborator, partnering with such artists as soprano Jae Min Shin, Tony Award® winner Anika Noni Rose, baritone Douglas Webster and violinist Stefan Milenkovich.
Mr. Tornelli has performed at many U.S. venues including the Music Academy of the West, Washington State University, Kalamazoo Music Center, Puerto Rico Classical Concert Series, and CAMI Community Concerts. He has toured and appeared internationally in South America and Europe. Mr. Tornelli has recently been part of three major productions of Leonard Bernstein's MASS-at Carnegie Hall, at the Jubilee Year Celebration at the Vatican, and with the Dallas Symphony.
He is a staff accompanist at The Juilliard School where he also completed his studies. Since 1998, he has been the collaborative pianist for "On the Edge", a performance class and technique developed and taught by Jean Kopperud.
Mr. Tornelli's numerous New York City appearances include The Rainbow Room, The Algonquin Hotel, 180 Maiden Lane Juilliard Concert Series, Steinway Hall, Alice Tully and Weill Recital Hall.
Recent performances included a recital with music by Christof Bergman's "Piazza Navona" at Weill Recital Hall, and the annual fundraiser for the "Path to Peace Foundation" hosted by the Representative of The Holy See at the United Nations.
Chantilly is a singer-songwriter, music teacher, and lifestyle blogger from Brooklyn, NY. She began her music training at the Community College of Rhode Island, studying classical ear training, theory, and operatic voice. Eventually moving on to Purchase College, she earned her degree in Studio Composition, graduated with honors, and also won the Patricia Kerr Ross award for songwriting and performance. Since then, she's released two pop-folk albums, toured the northeast, and began teaching voice and guitar lessons out of her home studio in Brooklyn.
Chantilly's first album “Caught Light” was recorded by friend Danielle DePalma on the heels of graduating from the conservatory. It was well-received by the press -- generating over 100,000 impressions through blog mentions alone -- and followed up by a northeastern tour.
More recently, she completed her second set of recordings, the "Up to the Moon EP," with producer Saul Simon Macwilliams at The Lovely Light Studio - who regularly works with Cara Salimando (Atlantic Records) Ingrid Michaelson, and Jenny Owen Youngs. This latest effort was made possible through a successful Kickstarter campaign, in which she raised over $2,100 from her fans to make the record.
She has appeared at high-profile music festivals including Club Passim's Campfire Fest, CMJ Music Marathon, and L Magazine's Northside Festival. She has been featured in the New York Daily News and The Deli Magazine (#1 on their songwriter charts when Caught Light came out.) She has also frequently partners with brands like Blowfish Shoes, Glasses USA, and Shabby Apple - who help create awareness for Chantilly's musical endeavors and her blog.
Pianist and composer Vickie Yang was born in Victoria, Canada where she started studying classical piano at the age of five. She studied through the Royal Conservatory of Music from whom she received a Silver Medal for the highest achievement in piano studies in the region. She continued to receive First Class Honors With Distinction in her classical examinations until the end of high school where she started to gain an interest in Jazz music. Vickie then decided to pursue her studies in jazz performance and received many scholarships, including one to attend Humber College in Toronto where she studied with some of Canada's top jazz musicians including Don Thompson, Pat LaBarbera and Brian Dickinson. She also received numerous awards for her efforts there including the Top Keyboard Player, Top Arranger, and the first Ron Collier Award for the most outstanding composer and arranger. Vickie spent five years in Toronto performing, writing and arranging with and for various types of musical groups. Her works have been recorded and/or performed by the Humber Studio Big Band, Toronto Jazz Orchestra, and the Seamus Blake Quartet. In addition to her collaborations with other artists, she leads her own chamber group, The Vickie Yang Orchestra. The ensemble features woodwinds, brass, strings and a full rhythm section performing an adventurous yet cohesive mix of jazz, classical and pop influences. Vickie obtained a Masters Degree in Jazz Composition at New York University where she studied with Vijay Iyer, Justin Dello Joio, Ralph Alessi, Gil Goldstein and Jim McNeely. She is currently a participant in the BMI Jazz Composers Workshop.
Vickie has taught at music schools in Toronto and New York as well as having her own private students of all levels and ages. She is a passionate and enthusiastic teacher that is dedicated to making each lesson fun and productive. She believes a technical foundation is important, but also encourages learning a wide range of repertoire of all musical styles.
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